A Capuche (also almuce) is a friar's cowl, a long, pointed hood which was typically worn by the

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...

, Capuchin, Augustinian,

Carmelite The Order of the Brothers of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel (; abbreviated OCarm), known as the Carmelites or sometimes by synecdoche known simply as Carmel, is a mendicant order in the Catholic Church for both men and women. Histo ...

, or

Cistercian The Cistercians (), officially the Order of Cistercians (, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint Benedict, as well as the contri ...

monks. The name, which is now the French word for "hood", is of

Middle French Middle French () is a historical division of the French language that covers the period from the mid-14th to the early 17th centuries. It is a period of transition during which: * the French language became clearly distinguished from the other co ...

origin, derived from the Italian word ''cappuccio'' and the

Late Latin Late Latin is the scholarly name for the form of Literary Latin of late antiquity.Roberts (1996), p. 537. English dictionary definitions of Late Latin date this period from the 3rd to 6th centuries CE, and continuing into the 7th century in ...

word ''cappa'', meaning cloak. The Capuchins in turn were named after the capuche, a name which Richard Viladesau states was a tribute to the

Camaldolese The Camaldolese Hermits of Mount Corona () are a Catholic Church, Catholic monastic order of pontifical right for men founded by Romuald, St. Romuald. Its name is derived from the Holy Hermitage () in Camaldoli, high in the mountains of Tuscany, ...

monks who gave early refuge to Matteo da Bascio, founder of the Capuchin Franciscans in the 1520s. An elongated hood worn by friars was originally denoted as a symbol of punishment or shame. Indeed, there are testaments of the capuche being given to

pauper Pauperism (; ) is the condition of being a "pauper", i.e. receiving relief administered under the Irish and English Poor Laws. From this, pauperism can also be more generally the state of being supported at public expense, within or outside of ...

s or thrown into fires during the time of

Francis of Assisi Giovanni di Pietro di Bernardone ( 1181 – 3 October 1226), known as Francis of Assisi, was an Italians, Italian Mysticism, mystic, poet and Friar, Catholic friar who founded the religious order of the Franciscans. Inspired to lead a Chris ...

. In Medieval Spain, Muslims were forced to wear bright yellow capuches with a blue moon on the right shoulder and to live in enclosures (morerías) to chasten them for not being Christian. The negative connotation associated with capuches appears to have been rescinded under

St Bonaventure Bonaventure ( ; ; ; born Giovanni di Fidanza; 1221 – 15 July 1274) was an Italian Catholic Franciscan bishop, cardinal, scholastic theologian and philosopher. The seventh Minister General of the Order of Friars Minor, he also serv ...

, who served as Minister General from 1257 to 1274. Bonaventure paid scrupulous attention to the uniforms of friars, issuing a decree which made friars more discernible from the Umbrian peasants. Bonaventure's decree made it obligatory for the backs of capuches to be pointed and rounded at the front, with a round cowl marginally large enough to cover the head. His reform concerning capuches effectively removed the stigma which had been attached to them among Franciscans. A black capuche was typically worn daily while a white one was much fuller and often reserved for ceremonial occasions. Capuchin friars once were grey but later a brown cloak with capuche and sandals had become the norm. The Cistercians wore a close-fitting

cuculla A cowl is an item of clothing consisting of a long, hooded garment with wide sleeves, often worn by monks. It was developed during the Early Middle Ages. The term may have originally referred to the hooded portion of a cloak, though contemporar ...

talare with a capuche worn over the tunic. The Caeremoniae of

Bursfelde Bursfelde is a village, now administratively joined with Hemeln as Bursfelde-Hemeln, in the northern part of Hann. Münden in the district of Göttingen, Lower Saxony, Germany. The village lies on the east side of the Weser River The Weser ...

in the latter half of the fifteenth century issued two different tunics, a

scapular A scapular () is a Western Christian garment suspended from the shoulders. There are two types of scapulars, the monastic and devotional scapular; both forms may simply be referred to as "scapular". As an object of popular piety, a scapular ...

with a capuche for work purposes and a floccus, a sleeveless cuculla worn at night.

References

{{reflist Catholic clerical clothing Capuchins